by E V Darcy
Marc decided The Mouth might not be so bad when she wrinkled her nose and shook her head. ‘No chance—you like Marmite. I trust nothing you say is good if someone else says it’s crap.’
‘You look happy,’ Jen said quietly as she came up beside Marc. He realised he was smiling at the room. ‘Haven’t seen you like this in forever. It’s a good look.’
‘It feels good,’ he found himself confessing as he watched Ellie and Tyler signing between mouthfuls of cereal. He had a brief moment imagining this could be his morning ritual for the rest of his life. The idea of waking up next to Ellie every day before taking a shower together, then sitting around the breakfast table arguing over cereal, made something within him yearn.
‘Umm…’ he began, his cheeks turning pink as he turned to face his assistant. ‘I need you to get me some things today…’
~ ~ ~ ~
Seriously, how are you so ill, still? Marie asked her friend after they had taken their seats in the conservatory restaurant. You’re not pregnant, are you?
It was meant as a joke, but Mallory froze as she was reaching for her glass of fresh orange juice. She turned wide, scared eyes towards her two friends who looked back with open mouths. No one spoke; their hands stayed still too, as they stared at one another.
Fuck! Marie finally exclaimed as she leant over the table. Could you actually be? Think. When was your last period?
Ellie and Marie could almost see the wheels turning in their friend’s head while she counted back her days.
Don’t you have an app to keep track of it? Ellie asked the poor, flustered girl, who reached for her phone and quickly unlocked it to search for the data.
‘Oh shit,’ Mallory breathed as she checked. The other two girls on the round table looked at them all, shocked at the profanity. I’m late—how did I not notice?
Probably because you had a lot on your plate. A wedding to start planning, the convention coming up, your promotion at work. Ellie rattled off the list.
Hey, Marie interrupted. It’s not confirmed yet, we’ll get you a test and you can be certain.
Ellie was hesitant to ask, but she felt someone should bring it up. Will Trent be okay with it?
‘Oh yes.’ Mallory nodded firmly, even though she’d gone pale. He really wants children—I do too. She bit her lip. We just wanted to wait ‘til we were married. We were going to start right after the wedding.
‘Welcome, ladies and gents,’ Crystal—the hostess—announced on her microphone, putting a stop to the conversation. ‘Welcome to the panel you’ve all been waiting for, Lucifer versus Gabriel!’
The crowd broke into a round of applause and cheers, but the three girls were no longer fully present. Marie and Ellie shared worried glances while Mallory stared off into the middle distance.
‘He’s disappeared on us twice, but he’s promised us today that he’ll stick around. That is, if you lot give him the biggest, warmest welcome in the history of Desti-Nation—I give you Mr Marc Matthews!’
The crowd went wild as Marc made his way to the stage, this time, unhindered by the distraction of his son; on this occasion, Marc didn’t let Tyler follow his papa.
Ellie barely noticed Marc’s arrival as she clapped absent-mindedly with the rest of the fans. She had a million questions, but they’d all be moot if Mallory wasn’t actually pregnant.
That’s it, she said and then folded up her napkin before she put it on the table. I’m off to the shop; the sooner we know, the sooner we’ll all be able to deal with it, right? Marie and Mallory simply stared at her a moment before they both nodded, although Ellie doubted they’d really taken in what she’d said.
She shook her head as she rose and grabbed her handbag. I’ll see you both in a bit. Try and at least look like you’re enjoying yourselves.
Just as she turned to leave, Marc caught her eye and sent a frown in her direction. Ellie signed to say that she’d tell him later, then left the restaurant oblivious to the glares from some of the other VIP attendees.
~ ~ ~ ~
Ellie’s sudden departure had distracted Marc throughout the breakfast panel, but Luc said he’d pulled it off; at least he’d been there the full hour. His contract didn’t say he had to be enthusiastic, did it? He’d also answered almost all the questions, but declined point-blank to entertain the one about his involvement with Ellie from a fan who seemed angry about it. Nutcase.
He frowned as he watched his Meet and Greet group leave the room. They had thirty minutes between each session for refreshments and comfort breaks. Marc had snorted at that description; just call a spade, a spade. Or in this case… He sniggered at his own thoughts.
Marc checked his watch; they had twenty-five minutes left and he had an itch to see Ellie. It wasn’t that he missed her, or had a desire to hold her in his arms again, kiss her senseless and hear her whimper. No, no. He was just concerned that she’d left the restaurant without any indication of why. The fact her two friends had barely looked at each other and The Mouth hadn’t been interpreting for Mallory made him even more uneasy.
‘Guys, can one of you do me a favour?’ he asked Jake and Adam, who stood within the doorway. They looked at one another before Jake shrugged and nodded.
‘There’s an attendee—Ellie Roscoe—she’s ticket double-oh-two-one. Can you find her and ask if she could join me for a few minutes?’
The two men again exchanged glances; Marc swore they were communicating via telepathy. Finally, Jake sighed and took a step towards the door. ‘She’s a VIP?’ Marc nodded and the man went off on his mini-mission.
‘So,’ he said after a moment of silence between him and Adam. ‘Have you and Jake worked together before?’
‘We’re partners.’
‘Oh, so you always work together?’
The bodyguard snorted. ‘No, Sir. You misunderstand. We’re partners.’
It took him a moment to click. ‘Oh.’
‘Got fed up of the don’t ask, don’t tell rule a few years back. Why shouldn’t I be able to say this guy’s my guy like the rest can brag about their girls.’
‘Damn right,’ Marc agreed. ‘Doesn’t stop you being able to do the job.’
‘Exactly. And we’re the best of the best.’
Marc checked his watch; the other man had been gone over five minutes now—surely it didn’t take that long to find them? The lounge was signposted. They’d gone past it a number of times over the last few days, much to his chagrin. The door was always open so the women could spot the stars, and all the squeals grated on his nerves.
It was another silent few minutes before Jake returned.
‘Sorry, but she’s not there,’ he told the star.
‘What?’
‘She missed her Meet and Greet with Mr Truman, apparently, but returned a few minutes into the break when her two companions disappeared with her.’
‘The Mouth,’ Marc said it as if Marie was to blame for Ellie not being available. He narrowed his eyes. What the hell were they up to?
He checked his watch again; he had fifteen minutes before her group was due.
‘Gentlemen, you say you’re the best of the best—this is what I need…’
~ ~ ~ ~
‘I can’t be in charge of this. I can’t look,’ Mallory said as she tried to hand the test stick to Marie.
‘Ew! No!’ Marie threw her hands up, palms flat, and shook her head. She wrinkled her nose. ‘You peed on that!’
‘Give it here,’ Ellie sighed from her folded-up perch on the toilet’s vanity counter-top. The three had headed to the ladies’ restroom as soon as Ellie came back. She’d had to go out of the hotel to find a store selling pregnancy tests.
How long does it take? Marie asked. Is this a one-two line thing or a plus-minus thing?
‘Here,’ Ellie shoved the box at Mallory. If she was holding the pee stick—and had gone out to get that stick in the first place—the others could do some of the work.
‘Three minutes. Plus-minus thing,’ Mallory t
old them as she read from the back of the package. ‘Oh, it will also say, pregnant or not pregnant. That’s even better.’ She set the box down and checked her watch.
‘Huh,’ Ellie said as she squinted at the stick. ‘I just thought that was for show on the box. You know, make it look better.’
Didn’t you read it? Marie asked.
‘No,’ Ellie shook her head as she found herself unable to take her eyes away from the little window on the stick. ‘I’ve been the centre of enough attention this weekend, imagine getting caught with that too! Bloody hellfire! No, thank you.
‘I grabbed it, paid for it, shoved it up my top and got the hell out of there.’
Marie and Mallory burst into laughter.
‘Oh! Oh! It’s changing!’
Ellie sat up straight and turned around so her legs were hanging over the edge of the vanity unit, to allow the other two girls to gather and see the result as it appeared.
With bated breath, they stared at the little window. When the result finally appeared, Ellie and Marie turned to Mallory, awaiting her reaction.
‘Pregnant,’ the American breathed, her eyes still fixed on the stick. Her hand drifted to her stomach and held it as if she could already feel the life that grew inside. Ellie glanced at Marie to see if she knew whether this was good or bad, but Marie just shrugged.
‘Girls,’ Mallory turned to them suddenly. ‘I’m pregnant.’
The two of them nodded, faces still blank.
‘Pregnant!’ When a huge smile broke over Mallory’s face, the two friends raised their arms for her to hug them. They squealed with delight, even if it was lost on Mallory.
After a moment in their embrace, Mallory declared she had to find Trent and tell him the news.
Do you want us to come with you? Ellie asked, but her friend shook her head.
I should do this just with him. He won’t mind you two knowing, but he likes privacy about things. They both turned to Marie; her jaw dropped in mock indignation.
When they left the bathroom they parted ways, Marie and Ellie heading back towards the VIP lounge.
‘Excuse me, Ma’am,’ a tall, handsome American greeted them, his eyes firmly on Marie. ‘I was wondering if you happened…’ While Ellie waited for him to finish chatting Marie up—an occurrence she was more than used to—she mused the man looked vaguely familiar. She couldn’t think where she had seen the gentleman, but she did know him.
She checked the time on her phone as she leant on the wall next to a closet door. They had just over ten minutes until they had to be in Marc’s Meet and Greet. She smiled at the thought of seeing her handsome star again.
She couldn’t believe how the weekend had turned out; on Wednesday she’d had enough of fandom—still true—and dreaded Marc’s appearance because of his attitude towards fans. But now she couldn’t wait to see him, hear his voice, look into those big blue eyes… She sighed as she thought of the star.
Yes, being the centre of attention wasn’t something she desired, but she liked it when those baby blues were on her. She was so lost in that thought, she didn’t notice the door to the cupboard right next to her was open just a crack.
Her thoughts shifted and she was too busy thinking of Marc caressing her body the night before, to observe the hand that reached out of the cupboard.
She was oblivious, still caught in the pondering of what that night would hold—as she’d managed to pick up a precious commodity of her own. She pondered on, right up until the moment the hand grabbed her and pulled her towards the small, dark opening.
She gave a little yelp as she was yanked into a cleaning supply room; she was about to scream when she heard a familiar voice. ‘It’s just me.’
‘Marc?’
‘Yeah.’ She squinted as he switched on the bare light bulb.
‘You tosser!’ she exclaimed as she smacked him across the chest. ‘You scared me to death!’
‘Oh, come on,’ he dropped his voice low as he moved toward her, his hands on her hips. ‘Your heart is pumping, your cheeks are flushed, your eyes are wild… It could be mistaken for something else,’ he murmured as he dipped his head toward her lips.
‘You’re a prat,’ she half laughed, half breathed as his lips barely brushed her own.
‘You left the panel,’ he said as he bypassed her lips, his breath feathering over her cheek. He pushed her hair behind her ear, lowering his face to it. ‘Why?’ Then he pressed a kiss just below her earlobe, sending shivers down her spine.
His aftershave, a hint of leather and suede, tickled her nose as he gently pushed her back against the wall with his body, covering her in a line of warmth from shoulder to knee.
‘What are we doing in here?’ she asked, her voice huskier than usual as he kissed down her neck to her shoulder and began pushing off her jacket.
‘Making out like a couple of teens.’ She could feel his smile against her collar bone. Her jacket fell to the floor and her arms returned to fasten around his neck. ‘But first,’ he said, lifting his head, his body still against hers. Now he looked into her eyes. ‘Tell me why you left the breakfast thing.’
She sighed. ‘I can’t tell you.’
‘Really?’
‘Really. It’s private—a friend’s place to tell, not mine.’
He frowned at her for a moment and she hoped he trusted and believed her. She knew that no matter what he said, he was only hers for the weekend. Their lives were just too different, but—despite that—she didn’t want the weekend to end early.
‘The Mouth, or Mallory?’
She pushed his shoulders playfully. ‘You’ve got to stop calling her that; she has a name.’
A sharp knock at the door made them jump.
‘Mr. Matthews,’ a voice came from the other side. ‘Time’s up.’
‘Seriously,’ she asked him. ‘You used Tweedle Dee to distract Marie?’
‘Be right out,’ he called before lowering his mouth to hers to take a kiss.
She was left breathless when he pulled away; he kissed her nose before stepping back. ‘You’re coming by tonight, right?’ he asked, picking up her jacket and helping her back into it.
‘Of course,’ she confirmed as she stood on her tiptoes to kiss him before she pushed open the door. There was laughter down the opposite end of the corridor, but the coast was clear—even Marie was gone. Only one of Marc’s two bodyguards stood in front of the exit.
‘You’re in my meeting now?’ he asked, stepping out of the cupboard and straightening his top. When she nodded, he simply smiled and took her hand, as they walked towards the room together.
No matter how much she tried to stop it, she couldn’t help the warm, melty feeling in her chest as they walked down the corridor shoulder to shoulder. She glanced up at him from the corner of her eye and immediately looked away, a furious blush lighting her face as she caught him glancing back. A little chuckle escaped him and it made her light up inside to know that, at least for a little while, she was the centre of his attention.
And that was attention she had decided she didn’t mind one bit.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
He ground his teeth as he stared the dark-haired woman down, through narrowed eyes. It was the same one from the VIP breakfast panel—he’d recognise that bad dye job anywhere.
‘You have a question?’ he managed to bite out. He saw Ellie shift uncomfortably in her seat to his left, next to Marie. The Mouth looked ready to jump up and deck the woman if she had to—her question had been the only time the blonde had really reacted in that morning’s panel.
‘Action! posted pictures this morning of a woman leaving your suite yesterday evening dressed only in a shirt—’
Ellie snapped to attention at that information; everyone went to grab their phones to find the picture, only to remember they’d had to surrender them before entering.
‘—the same woman who was rescued with your son from the elevator, the one you brought up on stage yesterday and introduced us to as Ellie.
’ The woman pointed directly across towards Ellie, whose face had gone white. Like a tennis match, all eyes turned to Ellie before darting back to the vile accuser.
Dammit. He should have had Sonya speak to the events team the moment the breakfast panel had finished. There was something off about this woman. Who spent this much money on VIP tickets, but couldn’t afford a decent haircut and style?
‘So my question is this; do you get a sick kick out of dating your fans?’
‘What?’
‘Well, your last recorded relationship with was a Kelly Tilson’—Marc physically jumped at the name. He heard Sonya suck in her breath; she’d come down to check on the proceedings
‘—Tyler’s mother,’ the woman went on, regardless. ‘Who was, according to her multiple psychiatrists’ reports, a fan with obsessive tendencies. She was also your assistant for two years before your relationship with her.’
‘What the fuck?’ Marc asked, stunned that this infiltrator had so much information. ‘Where the hell did you get this from?’
‘So it’s true?’
‘What? No!’ He was flummoxed, looking towards Sonya and the VIP manager for help, but the pair sat still in shock.
‘Who the fuck are you?’
‘Is it true Kelly has no contact with her son because you’ve had her locked away in a mental institution, drugged up, supposedly for her own good?’
‘That is fucking it!’ Marie snapped, standing. ‘I don’t know who the fuck you are or how the hell you got in here, but you can shut the fuck up right now and piss off before I put you on the floor!’
Marc blinked in surprise at the impassioned defence. He knew Marie was loyal to Ellie, but—
‘Yeah,’ another girl opposite Marc joined in. She also stood, folding her arms as she glared at bad-dye-job. ‘Where do you get off making up this kind of shit? Get out.’
‘I’m not making it up,’ the woman countered as she crossed her legs and sat back as if she was right at home.
‘Like hell,’ another woman, sitting next to bad-dye-job, said. ‘We can all see this is a pile of crap. Like they said, get out before we throw you out.’ The woman looked across to Marie, who was nodding. The rest of the room murmured assent. One by one, they rose in solidarity.
